


Playing the Game

by orphan_account



Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types, Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-09
Updated: 2016-06-09
Packaged: 2018-07-14 00:44:00
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,950
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7145153
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Katniss and Peeta are in Paris for the Euro 16 final.<br/>Who will win?</p><p>Inspired by "For The Love of The Game" by Titania522-a very cute and hot fic, and the football fever that is brewing for Euro 2016. Though I've removed all football from the story!</p><p>M for some rude language.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Playing the Game

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [For the Love of the Game](https://archiveofourown.org/works/1987680) by [titania522](https://archiveofourown.org/users/titania522/pseuds/titania522). 



The three months were nearly up and Katniss couldn’t wait to get her hands on Peeta again. She only had herself to blame, which didn’t help at all. She had been the one to encourage Peeta to take his baking seriously and train as a pastry chef. And she had truly been excited for him when he was awarded the chance to spend the summer working with one of the top Patissiers in Paris. But Katniss had found it hard to communicate with him using skype and face time.

It wasn’t that she was a touchy -feely person, far from it, but it was different with Peeta, that was exactly how she could show him how much he meant to her. She could never put her feelings properly into words. Their conversations had become more distant, as though the miles between them were pushing them apart. That night she was determined it would be better.

“Say something” she goaded herself, as the conversation faltered. “I miss you.”

“I miss you too.”

“You’ll be home again next week, right?”

“Well, actually, that’s my news. It’s the European cup final next week,”

Her mouth formed into a silent “Oh” of disappointment.

“Johanna scored us some tickets.”

Oh! Johanna, of course. She’d seen plenty of pictures of Johanna, the Parisian sous chef with the perfect breasts. Johanna and Peeta covering each other with flour, Johanna and Peeta drinking in the bar after a long shift, Johanna and Peeta frolicking in the fountain…she started to see red.

“Katniss, did you hear me ok?”

“Okay,” she echoed him as she tried to pull herself round to a fit state to speak.  
“Well you have a good time. I’ll see you later.” She made to end the call.

“Katniss, please, don’t go,” something in his voice finally got through to her and she waited for him. “Us. That still means you and me; as far as I’m concerned anyway.” She could hear the doubt in his mind. How could he possibly doubt that he was still the one for her?

“I thought you meant you and Johanna. I’m not in Europe, remember?” She wished she could stop herself from sounding snarky with him, but she was feeling neglected.

“Don’t worry about Johanna. I’m sure you’re going to like her; she’s good fun, outspoken, she’s great, really.”

“I’ll have to go, the time difference you know, I’ve got to be up early. Let’s talk about it tomorrow.”

“Speak to you tomorrow then,” he sighed.

The hurt in his voice pricked her conscience, a feeling she immediately turned into more anger.  
“Johanna-she’s great,” she mimicked her boyfriend. “She’s got great tits more like.” Katniss stomped around her flat, so quiet and functional without Peeta’s warmth. She washed up so hard she broke a glass and cut her hand, at last giving her an excuse to let a few tears out. She rummaged through the drawers to find a dressing, of course Peeta would have known exactly where they were. She hated how much she missed him. “Damn you Peeta” she cursed. Damn him, for making her need him so badly.

The bleeding stopped; she opened a bottle of beer and called her sister. Prim could always make things better.  
“He’s over there with Madame Mammary. What does he want me for anyway?” she allowed her walls to come down around Prim.  
“He said he wants you to come and be with him, in Paris. Don’t let that jealousy of yours get in the way. And if you think he’s being stolen from you, all the more reason. Go and bring him back. You two are meant to be together.”  
“Thanks Prim.” As always she had put everything right again.

  


She was determined to be nicer tonight. Maybe it didn’t help that it was always her evening and his morning when they spoke. She could see the dawn colours through the window behind him. He was so very far away. She had to swallow down the pain in her chest before it leaked out through her eyes.

“Hi,”

“Did you sleep ok last night? I was worried about you.”

“Yes, thanks.”

“I miss you.”

“I miss you too.” She tried to breathe more feeling into her answer, to let him know how much she really felt his absence.

“Are you going to come over, for the final? There’s no point me staying if you won’t. I just thought, you know, football and us, it’s our thing…” he put his hand on the screen to touch her and she placed her hand over it. The cold, hard glass only emphasised what she was missing.

Peeta felt the same way, “I so badly need to kiss you Katniss, your mouth, your neck, your body. I want to taste you again.”

She felt his heat, but like this, over a screen, it just made her blush. They’d tried before, when he first arrived in Paris. She’d watched him stroking his already handsome cock, until it was long and thick and hard and so very ready for her, all the while talking about the things he wanted to do to her. But she just couldn’t do it. She felt too exposed, as though she could be on TV somehow. Just the thought of someone else seeing her stopped the passion. She needed him; the solid, warm wall of body that was Peeta. To have him there with her, spreading her legs apart with his muscular thighs, feeling his stomach on hers, smelling him… It was no good thinking like this. It only got her hot and wet and frustrated.

“It’s not Panem though is it?” She cooled the situation down again, returning to the controversy of whether she should fly thousands of miles to watch two teams she didn’t support, in a match she didn’t really care about.

Peeta gave a heavy sigh, stopped in his tracks from any chance of romance again. “I know; it was just an opportunity, Johanna was given these tickets for the match. I’ve bought you a flight over already actually.”

She swallowed down her instinctive annoyance at someone making choices for her. Trying to see it the way Prim would. Peeta was doing all he could to get her to be there in Paris with him. Sometimes she couldn’t understand herself, why she had to be so difficult about accepting the things he wanted to give her.

“What about my work?”

“I spoke to Haymitch too.”

“So everyone knows about this.”

“Well,”

“Oh My God, who else?”

“Finnick and Annie are going to come over too. They’ve arranged to meet up with some old friends who are here for the competition.”

“The old gang,” Katniss couldn’t help but smile at the thought of them all going over together.

“Not quite, sorry, Madge and Gale can’t make it and Thresh and Rue are out too.”

“It’ll be fun,” Peeta continued, spotting he was winning her round at last. “You’ll have Finnick and Annie for company on the plane…”

  


Of course Peeta had persuaded her. Who had she been kidding really. Given half a chance, why wouldn’t she run straight off after him to Paris?

It was also her first international flight and she had a few nerves. She hadn’t slept at all the night before; worries about being on a different continent to Prim took over whenever she tried to close her eyes.

Finnick and Annie had started drinking at the airport. The flight attendant declined their last request for alcohol as they were becoming loud enough to annoy the other passengers; so they had disappeared off to the bathroom together twenty minutes ago.

Katniss was just about to give in to her fatigue, lulled by the drone of the engines, when she was brought back by a commotion at the end of the plane.

“I’ve never been so…” A highly coiffured lady was shrieking.

“Impressed?” Finnick finished her sentence for her as Annie giggled.

“No, Young man, Not impressed at all. It’s offensive, not to mention ill-mannered.”

“I’m very sorry,” Annie had pulled herself together enough to try to keep the peace. The problem being she clearly had spunk down her cleavage. “We’re just so very in love. You know how it is?”

Unfortunately, trying to appeal to the lady’s sense of romance whilst wearing Finnick’s jism wasn’t really working.

“Love does not excuse exposing me to that exhibition. I don’t think I’ll ever get over it.”

Finnick and Annie couldn’t help themselves from folding over with laughter at this. As if Finnick needed any more endorsement of his man-hood.

The flight attendant tried to settle them down, offering the lady a drink, which she accepted, but she still insisted on formally reporting Annie and Finnick for offensive behaviour in a public place.

“I’m not sure how, but the door unlocked itself and she witnessed Annie expressing her love for me,” Finnick explained after they returned to their seats. “There was quite a lot of expressing,” Annie giggled again. Katniss rolled her eyes at the pair, who were already peppering each other with kisses and whispering sweet nothings. What Annie had said had been true. They just couldn’t hide how much they adored each other. Katniss frowned, wishing she could be a bit more like that sometimes. She was going to make sure Peeta knew exactly how she felt about him when they got to Paris.

  


The flight got in to Charles De Gaulle airport at 6am. Peeta had special permission to be late for his shift to meet his friends, but he still needed to get to the market to buy fresh ingredients and prep the desserts so that he could finish in time for the match.

His time in Paris had been full of new experiences, and he’d learned a lot. But it had been even harder work than he’d expected, with little praise or encouragement from the fierce patissiere. In fact she’d clearly given him the message that he would never be good enough. He couldn’t wait to get back home to life with Katniss in Panem. At least now he knew for sure, he had no desire to become a master patissier. His own bakery, where he could create his own recipes, with Katniss as his head taster, that was all the dream he needed.

He waited in the arrivals lounge. The flight was definitely in. What was keeping them? A text sounded. Katniss-she was in Paris, in the same building. The tingle of expectation made him jittery as he imagined swinging her into his arms.

-Sorry, we’ve been detained by the airport security-It looks like its going to take a bit of sorting out. You should get on to work. I’ll see you soon KXXX

  


She could kill Finnick and Annie right now. Peeta had been worried about them, but she had insisted they could sort it out and he would be better off getting his work done. He wouldn’t have been allowed back behind the customs line anyway. The only positive was it turned out Annie could speak fluent French. She had covered her low cut top with a scarf and looked like butter wouldn’t melt as she begged their pardon.

Being less able than Annie to follow the quick paced conversation and realising that she would rather check into her hotel than see Finnick and Annie behind bars, the offended person left after half an hour. She just wished Finnick would have looked at least a little bit remorseful, but he had laughed through the whole event.

“Sorry”, Annie apologised as they finally got into a taxi. She knew how much Katniss had been looking forward to seeing Peeta, and now she was going to have to wait another 6 hours. The plan was for Katniss to stay with Peeta in his apartment, but with no key she had to join Finnick and Annie in their hotel.

  


“If you think I’m going to sit around and listen to you two shagging, you’ve got another thing coming.” Her eyes were daggers at Finnick.

“Katniss, Katniss, Katniss, I would never leave you out,” he teased, gesturing an invitation towards the bed.

Slamming the door to the ensuite, she locked herself away and ran a deep bubble bath to try to soothe her nerves. It was nearly 9 o’clock in Paris, her body thought it was the middle of the night, the concept of sleep was starting to feel like a fantasy rather than something she actually experienced. Her head kept slipping lower in the warm water as her heavy eyelids dropped. Water up her nose brought her to and she sat up coughing. “Oh for pity’s sake”, she could hear the rhythmic squeak of the bed springs. Looked like she was stuck in here for a while longer. She switched from the hot bath to a cold shower; painted her nails, dried her hair and put on some of Annie’s make up. She checked again that all had gone quiet before peeping out. Finnick and Annie lay snuggled together, naked under the covers, fast asleep. She couldn’t help feeling envious, but maybe not enough to take up Finnick’s offer and climb in with them. She dressed as quietly as she could, though it didn’t look like anything would disturb them, and left them both a text saying she was going to explore for a while.

  


She needed caffeine, so where better than a Parisian café to while away a few hours. She didn’t realise that the typically brusque waiters treated her with unusual patience as she practised her very limited range of French phrases. There was something about her mix of independence and innocence, along with her attractive appearance, that made people want to help her. She got talking to an older gentleman, and allowed him to order her a pastry he recommended. It was good, but not as good as some of Peeta’s creations. When she told her new companion about him, enjoying the opportunity to boast a little on Peeta’s behalf, he suggested she could go to the restaurant where he worked for lunch. After an awkward moment when she thought maybe the French man was asking to take her out, she realised he was just making a good suggestion. It might not be possible to see him, but it was about time she got closer.

They said farewell at the entrance to the metro station, as Katniss ventured further into the foreign city. She was starting to enjoy finding her way around on her own. She got a bit lost, missing the stop first time, but doubled back to get to where she needed to be. Peeta’s restaurant.

  


She recognised it from the pictures he’d posted. It was hard to believe he was inside. Her heart beat thudded against her breast as she asked if there was a table for one available for lunch.

Her first frosty response. After awkwardly asking the host to repeat themselves twice, which they did without slowing down or changing the words in any way, she realised it was a definite no. Katniss couldn’t help but feeling the response had more to do with her look not fitting as the tables being booked up.

Deflated, she walked up the road, uncertain what to do next. It was midday. The match would kick off at 3pm. She looked back at Peeta’s place of work for the last three months. It was clear she hadn’t been wanted at the front of house, but maybe there was a back door somewhere. She could surprise him. “See,” she thought to herself, “I can be romantic too.”

  


It was ridiculous how nervous she felt. Katniss pushed her hair behind her ear and pressed her lips together, wondering if there would be any of Annie’s lipstick left on her by now. This was it, their Paris reunion. Instead of knocking she pushed open the door. She had worked it out right, there were the kitchens, gleaming with steel and heat. She scanned for Peeta’s broad shoulders and blonde curls. Where was he? Someone else spotted her first.

“Peeta?” she asked, almost pleading by now.

There was a moment before a look of recognition came over the boys face. He didn’t look much more than a teenager, employed to wash up.

“Katniss!” Her name pronounced with a strong French accent. She wanted to hug him for knowing who she was. Peeta must have mentioned her at least then.  
He wasn’t taking her anywhere though.

“Peeta…?” She repeated. Languages just weren’t really her thing.

The look on the boys face sank, taking Katniss’s spirits with it.

“L’hopital”

That didn’t take much translating.

He gestured the international sign for cutting your finger off. Katniss felt sick.

“where..ou..l’hopital?” She had to see the damage for herself.

She couldn’t understand the boys reply, but she thanked him and set off back to the metro. Peeta hadn’t called her or left any message on her phone, but she decided to call him anyway. She was sick of France keeping them apart. It was like that first world cup and their last minute goal all over again.

The call connected and she pounced with relief-“Peeta where are you?”

“ ‘Allo?” A woman’s voice. She would put money on it being Johanna.

Tears threatened again. She had flown over three thousand miles, not slept properly for two days, and she hadn’t touched her boyfriend for three months. It was all starting to be too much.

“Can I speak to Peeta Mellark? It’s Katniss.”

“Katniss,”

At least the woman seemed to have heard of her.

“He’s having bandages, he cut off his finger. We lost it.”

“Where are you?” the desperation in her voice was unmissable.

There was no reply but she could hear muffled talking in the background.

“Katniss?”-It was Peeta at last.

“Peeta,” she nearly screamed his name, before realising she was stood in a crowded station.

“Peeta, are you OK? What’s happened to your finger?”

“It’s nothing really; just a tip. I wasn’t concentrating properly.”

She shuddered at the thought of one of the lethal looking chefs knives slicing through his flesh. There would have been a lot of blood. Just the thought made her feel slightly faint and she moved herself over to find a seat.

She hoped his lack of concentration had nothing to do with her; but in her heart she knew she would be to blame. He’d never done anything like that before.

“Katniss?”

She realised she hadn’t managed to say anything.

“I’ll come to the hospital.”

“No, it’s ok, we can still meet at the stadium. You don’t want to be wasting your trip sitting in a hospital.”

“I don’t want to waste my trip never getting to see you.”

She sounded angry but Peeta heard her words, not just the noise. It lifted his heart again. They had seemed to be growing apart whilst he was away.

“I’m desperate to see you too, believe me, but really, it’s only a couple of hours till the match, there’s no point you dragging across Paris. You must be tired from the flight. Are you jet lagged?”

“Why are you asking about me when you’re in hospital?”

“You know why,” he spoke softly, the tone of his voice going straight to her core. It would probably be a good time to tell him that she loved him too, but it felt too public at the station, and he was with Johanna, when he should be with her.

“When are we going to meet then?”

“Half past two, at the bar, near the stadium. Finnick knows the one.”

“Promise me you’ll be there.”

“I promise.” He wanted to say something more, but left it at “I won’t let you down.”

“I know.”

Neither of them wanted to hang up, but Katniss’s phone beeped to let her know there was just one bar of battery life left.

  


“Sorry Madamoiselle, I can not let you in to your friend’s room.”

Of course Finnick and Annie weren’t there when she got back to the hotel. That’s the way the gods were rolling her dice today. Her suitcase was locked in their room, she couldn’t charge her phone. She’d like to brush her teeth again before she saw Peeta too.

There was no answer when she called. They were probably somewhere too loud to hear a phone.  
She texted them both. -WHERE ARE YOU !!! yes..I AM SHOUTING (angry face)

It was probably 5 minutes but it felt like a lot more before an answer came through from Annie.  
-Sorry, we’re in the bar near the stadium with Finnick’s friends. Come and join us.

And then her phone went dead. Was battery life shorter in Europe?

She tapped it against her hand, took the battery out and gave it a rub. No use.

Back over to the pleasant but unyielding receptionist for directions to the stadium. Katniss was fighting exhaustion, determined to be upbeat when she saw Peeta again. She’d have Johanna to face too and she was determined she wouldn’t be beaten by the boob lady.

  


Out on the street everyone was headed in the same direction. French flags were everywhere, the excitement building as the home team had once again reached the final. The irony was she had always sided with any team opposing France since the year when they stole Peeta’s kiss from her. Probably best not to mention that too loudly today though.

2.15 and she had reached the stadium. 

It was the final straw. “Which bar?”

The area was a sea of people in football colours, flags, singing, chants, languages she didn’t understand. And there were several different bars.  
She had never felt more lost and alone in her life, and there had been some pretty horrendous times. She was sure this was it. Lost in France forever. She would never see Prim or Peeta again, it was over.

  


A hand landed on her shoulder. She would have normally had the offender on the ground in a second, but her reactions were blunted by the jet lag.  
It took only one more second to realise.

She grabbed the hand in hers.

“Peeta!”

“You came back to me!” She wrapped her arms so tight around his neck. He still had his same scent, baking spices and Peetaness.

Peeta ran his hands up her back, not daring to hold her too tight for fear it was a dream.

“I’m never letting you go ever again.”

There were tears in both their eyes, blinked back as the realisation they were finally together again made it all alright.

Then Katniss saw his hand. It had been more than a tip, nearly half of his left middle finger had gone.

She raised the bandaged wound to her lips. “I’m going to have to take better care of you,” she promised.

“I think I’d like that,” he accepted, finally claiming his kiss. The rest of the world disappeared as they melted into each other, the two halves that made a whole.

  


Johanna stood and watched for a while, and soon realised this was something special. Something she had never experienced.

She tapped Peeta on the shoulder, but it seemed she didn’t exist anymore, as he caressed Katniss’ face. They were lost in each other.

“Peeta” she shouted.

The girl finally pulled back, biting Peeta’s lower lip as they separated. They still didn’t look away from each other.

“Katniss?” she guessed.

She nodded, but kept her eyes on her prize.

“Do you want your tickets for the match?”

Katniss and Peeta understood each other perfectly, both shaking their heads.

They had better games to play.

**Author's Note:**

> Yey Portugal!!!


End file.
